Latest news with #nonimmigrant
Arabian Business
06-08-2025
- Business
- Arabian Business
US to launch visa bond pilot of up to $15,000 for visitors from ‘high-risk' countries
The United States will begin trialling a controversial visa bond programme on August 20 that will require some travellers from countries with high overstay rates to pay refundable bonds of up to $15,000 as part of a 12-month pilot aimed at deterring visa violations. According to an official notice published in the Federal Register, the pilot will apply to non-immigrant B-1 and B-2 visa applicants (covering business and tourism travel) from countries deemed to pose a higher risk of visitors overstaying their visas or lacking robust identity and security screening infrastructure. US consular officers will have the discretion to impose bonds of $5,000, $10,000 or $15,000, with the $10,000 bond set as the expected default. These bonds will be fully refunded if travellers comply with their visa terms and depart the United States within the authorised timeframe. 'The pilot program is intended to test the operational feasibility of posting, processing, and refunding visa bonds,' the notice states, describing it as a mechanism to assess whether such financial requirements can effectively support compliance with immigration laws. Country criteria and exemptions Countries will be selected based on criteria including high visa overstay rates, screening and vetting deficiencies, risks associated with citizenship-by-investment schemes that do not require residency, and other foreign policy considerations. While the Visa Waiver Program countries (such as the UK, EU members, Japan, and others) are exempt, the notice does not list specific targeted nations, noting instead that consular posts will receive guidance from the Department of State's Bureau of Consular Affairs on which countries meet the criteria. However, based on historical data and past US policies, likely affected countries include Chad, Eritrea, Haiti, Myanmar, Yemen, and various others in Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean. Part of a broader immigration crackdown The pilot revives and modifies a similar bond programme briefly introduced in November 2020 during President Donald Trump's first term but never fully enacted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The current version aligns with Trump's renewed focus on immigration enforcement and visa integrity following his return to office, and comes amid rising scrutiny of visitor overstay figures, which exceeded 500,000 suspected cases in 2023, according to Department of Homeland Security data. The programme also coincides with a new $250 'visa integrity fee', approved by Congress in July, which will be levied on most non-immigrant visa applicants from 1 October 2025. This separate charge is designed to offset the costs of immigration enforcement and is reimbursable if visa conditions are met. Industry concerns over travel deterrence While the Department of State said it could not estimate the exact number of applicants who may be subject to bonds, the US Travel Association projected that the programme could affect roughly 2,000 applicants, primarily from countries with relatively low travel volume. 'If implemented, the US will have one of the highest visitor visa fees in the world,' the association warned, citing concerns the measure could deter legitimate tourism and business travel. The visa bond pilot will run through 20 August 2026, after which the government will assess its effectiveness and consider next steps, including potential expansion or permanent adoption.
Zawya
09-07-2025
- Zawya
Cameroon: United States (U.S.) Embassy in Yaoundé Announces Changes to Visa Procedures and Fees
Effective immediately, and in keeping with the U.S. Government's global efforts to tighten U.S. immigration requirements, the U.S. Embassy Yaoundé is revising its visa procedures, as well as the validity periods and issuance fees for most visa classifications. Cameroonian citizens who successfully apply for a tourist, business, exchange, or student visa are now issued a single-entry, three-month validity visa, with a significantly reduced issuance fee of $35 or its equivalent in FCFA (down from $215) to be paid if the visa is approved. Temporary work visas now also have a single-entry, three-month validity, with a reduced issuance fee of $45. A U.S. visa permits the visa holder to travel to the United States up until the visa's expiration date. The traveler's authorized duration of stay in the United States is distinct from the visa validity and is determined by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (that is, the U.S. immigration authorities travelers encounter upon arrival at port of entry). In addition, the Embassy is suspending indefinitely the nonimmigrant visa interview waiver program that allowed some visa applicants who had had prior visas to apply without coming into the Embassy for an interview. Henceforth, all nonimmigrant visa applicants applying in Cameroon are now required to appear for an in-person interview at the U.S. Embassy in Yaoundé. The Embassy remains committed to facilitating legitimate travel to the United States while maintaining the integrity of its visa adjudication and issuance process. We strongly encourage all applicants to visit the Embassy's website at for detailed procedural information and to schedule a visa interview accordingly. Applicants should also carefully review the legally-established visa eligibility criteria prior to paying for an appointment to try to assess objectively whether they are likely to qualify for the desired visa under U.S. law. Doing an objective self-assessment against the legal criteria will save applicants time, effort, and money on a visa application that is likely to be denied. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of U.S. Embassy in Cameroon.
Malay Mail
30-06-2025
- Business
- Malay Mail
Want to go to the US? Your social media must now be public, embassy tells F, M, J visa applicants
KUALA LUMPUR, June 30 — The United States has introduced new visa requirements for visitors applying for F, M, and J non-immigrant visas, including mandatory disclosure of social media handles and public access to those profiles. 'Effective immediately, all individuals applying for an F, M, or J nonimmigrant visa are requested to adjust the privacy settings on all of their social media accounts to public to facilitate vetting,' the US Embassy said in a statement posted to its Facebook account today. This move in Malaysia joins other similar measures undertaken by the US State Department to enhance national security and improve the visa vetting process. Thailand, India, Japan and South Africa are among the countries where the US has announced the new visa rules this year. F visas are issued to academic students, M visas are for vocational students, and J visas are given to those in exchange programs such as scholars, interns, and researchers. Visa applicants must now include usernames from platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, and TikTok used in the past five years. This also includes accounts that are inactive or no longer in use. Applicants must certify the accuracy of their social media information before submitting the DS-160 visa application form for non-immigrants.
